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John MacArthur

Servant of the Word and flock

Contemporary contender

JOHN MACARTHUR
Servant of the Word and flock
By Iain H. Murray
Banner of Truth. 246 pages. £14.50
ISBN 978 1 848 711 129

This book records the life story of one of the most prominent evangelical ministers in the USA.

It places it in the social and religious context of that country, illustrating how various influences have shaped his ministry over the last 40 years and the contributions he has made to a number of theological controversies over that period of time. The author describes his work as ‘little more than a “sketch”: a full portrait must await a later date and come from another hand’ (p.xii). Although Murray is correct that this book is not a definitive critical appraisal of the ministry of John MacArthur, it is still a substantial work of nearly 250 pages.

MacArthur comes from a line of Baptist preachers and this Christian heritage has clearly shaped significant aspects of his ministry. He was ordained to the Christian ministry by the Independent Fundamental Churches of America in 1964. Yet, unlike some other conservative evangelical ministers of that era, he was actively opposed to the racism of many fellow whites and was happy to be associated with the campaign for civil rights. Murray paints a picture of a man passionately committed to the historic Christian faith, yet with an openness to follow wherever he believed scriptural truths led him. By the 1980s, MacArthur was increasingly appreciating the books of Martyn Lloyd-Jones and Puritans like Thomas Watson. This shift in his thinking was confirmed by the publication of possibly his most significant work, The Gospel According to Jesus, a powerful critique of a defective version of the gospel that had taken root in significant branches of evangelicalism in the last two centuries. Another controversy in which MacArthur played an important role concerned the teachings and practices of the charismatic movement. Charismatic Chaos was his fullest treatment of that subject.

This book, like previous Murray biographies, is a pleasure to read. It enables us to catch a glimpse of the subject in his family, local church and wider Christian ministries. It does not avoid mentioning the struggles and heartaches MacArthur has faced, which grounds his life story in the real world, and reveals the triumph of God’s grace in adversity.

Dr. Brian Talbot,
minister of Broughty Ferry Baptist Church, Dundee